My name is Kara Hendy and I am a Junior at the University of Cincinnati. I am studying to be a High School English teacher. I have a passion for high school students and chose to teach Language Arts because it is a subject matter that naturally fosters an opportunity for classroom discussion. I am currently a full time student as well as a full time employee at Starbucks. I have worked at Starbucks for the past three years as a Shift Supervisor. I absolutely love my job because the people I work with and serve are incredible, and in many ways, they have become a second family. I enjoy spending the little spare time that I have with my parents and my friends. I love to travel; I have been to Africa twice, India, and Mexico numerous times. All of these trips were mission trips with my church and were very educational and rewarding. I hope for the opportunity to teach abroad someday and if not, I would love to move across the country to teach. I am 23 years old and entering the stage where my friends are getting married. This year I will be a bridesmaid in 4 weddings! And this is only the beginning... :) I look forward to this quarter as it equips me to be a better teacher.
1. The Great Gatsby Game http://greatgatsbygame.com/2. I would say this is a drill-type game, not because it is bursting with facts but because it is a low level thinking game. There are a few facts of the storyline used within the game--dialogue between Nick and Gatsby and other characters. In the same breath, I think this game might also be considered a role-playing game because as a gamer, you are assuming the role of Nick and it's centered around his journey in finding Gatsby.3. This game could be used for further discussion of the novel--ask students why they think the game creator made the decisions that he/she did. Ask student how the game portrayed scenes of the novel and what creative changes they would make to the game. This inspires critical thinking and allows creativity. Compare and contrast.4. My experience with this game was that it reminded me of old school Mario. I, personally, am not a good gamer. I remember as a kid, my older brother would play Nintendo and would never include me or show me how it worked--his patience was very thin to teach his annoying little sister the ropes. It was his thing, and I would shrug my shoulders and play with my Barbies instead. To this day, because I am not good at these sort of games, I have very little interest in them.
When I think of Constructivist Teaching Methods, I think of building blocks. This theory takes the stance of building on top of what is already known based on experiences and prior knowledge and then taking it the next step further in the learning process.
Learning within context and relativity.
Hands on learning: promotes exploring and interacting with environment.
Viewing each student individually as scientists. Not every student draws the same conclusions from interactions--open minded to diverse thinking and creativity. Some do not learn at the same rate.
Give students a choice--teacher acts as a mentor rather than a teller. The hope here is that students would choose what most appeals to them--therefore the activity would be more stimulating rather than boring and be more productive in the end.
When disciplining, instead of using authority and ordering, getting down on students' level and try reasoning with them.
Group interaction is encouraged.
Videos displaying Constructivist view in the classroom:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxufdpcfpJY --students are given a big project that requires prior knowledge application of the previous year in school. Group project that inspires creativity.
When I think of Behaviorism/Objectivism, I think of dog training. This theory takes the stance that people learn from positive and negative reinforcement. This is carried out with rewards and punishments.
Creativity is less encouraged--more about following the rules/schedule/routine/instructions.
Strict following of curriculum.
Teacher firmly establishes role of authority figure.
Belief that learning is acquired through repetition.
Students mostly work alone.
Videos of Objectivism Theory in the classroom:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-S54bbX6eA Ferris Bueller's teacher is objectivist in this clip. There is no feedback from the students and zero classroom interaction. No fun in learning. And probably little actual learning is happening.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGCJ46vyR9o&feature=youtu.be This is a critical view of collegiate learning environments and how lecture halls are set up. It is nearly impossible for these lecture halls to encourage classroom interaction. This is an example of strict adherence to lesson plans and test taking.
I remember my high school classrooms to resemble more of a constructivist classroom. We were assigned many group projects and were encouraged to think outside the box and actively participated in discussions, games, and other activities. When disciplined, we were mostly spoken to like an adult and reasoned with. When we had projects, there were always various choices to pick from.
Does technology make a difference in the learning process or could you teach just as well without it?
Technology both aids and hinders in the learning process. It helps teachers in grading efficiently and staying organized. It is stimulating and captivating in the task of attaining students' attention. I'm sure there are many more benefits that technology brings to the classroom, however, there are definitely consequences when plaigarism is so easily achieved and phones in the classroom and other technologies create great distractions for students. Social media also greatly effects the learning environment as students participate in cyber bullying.
Are students today fundamentally different than students in the past?
Overall, no. But I do believe that students face different challenges today than in the past.
"Perhaps it is time that we stop expecting teachers to make the improvements on their own, and instead expect school districts, state, provincial or federal departments of education, and universities to provide ongoing and collaborative assistance" (Schrum, p. 14). This came from the conclusion of the TEARS article. This suggests that it is necessary for the system to take technology integration seriously and institute funding and an action plan.
In service training
Teachers training teachers is proven effective
Funding for resources should be budgeted
E-Portfolio
1. Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity
Teachers use their knowledge of subject matter, teaching and learning, and technology to facilitate experiences that advance student learning, creativity, and innovation in both face-to-face and virtual environments. Teachers:
a.
promote, support, and model creative and innovative thinking and inventiveness.
This course provided many tools and resources to allow for creative and innovative thinking in our future classrooms. When the quarter first began, I had a few concerns/doubts on how possible it would be to integrate technology in a high school English classroom. My only experiences with technology in English were video clips, PowerPoints, and old school overhead projectors. I model most of my educational philosophy after my high school English teacher and I think it was hard for me to wrap my mind around straying from what I experienced in her classroom. Now I see how necessary technology is because it engages students. More than anything, I want to reach my students and utilize different strategies for learning.
I think one of the most exciting things about this course was collaborating with fellow students in Secondary Education Language Arts majors and creating a lesson plan using technology. It was fun to bounce ideas off one another in forming a plan to teach our class about poets and poetry devices while integrating technology and games.
Our class Diigo site is one example of how creativity and innovative thinking was promoted throughout this course. We were encouraged to collaborate constructivist lessons--which is, in fact, a constructivist approach. We were able to give one another feedback on our findings and this opened ourselves up to fresh ideas to integrate technology in our classrooms based on subject matter and grade level.
2. Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments
Teachers design, develop, and evaluate authentic learning experiences and assessment incorporating contemporary tools and resources to maximize content learning in context and to develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes identified in the NETS•S. Teachers:
d. provide students with multiple and varied formative and summative assessments aligned with content and technology standards and use resulting data to inform learning and teaching.
Even though I am three years into my major in Secondary Education Language Arts, this was the first class that instructed me to create and practice lesson planning. I began this class thinking I was just going to get a refresher in different programs such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. I was pleasantly surprised to be wrong about this course. I was introduced to multiple resources for lesson planning through the CECH website that I was completely unaware that existed. This really takes the pressure off, knowing that my creative thinking will run dry at times, and this is such a great tool to inspire creativity in lesson plans and read feedback from other teachers in the field on what worked in their classrooms and what did not.
In some ways I was raised to be cautious in adapting to technology. I used to joke that my dad was amish in his stubbornness to accept the inevitable change in technology. We were the last family to get cell phones, DVD players, or high speed Internet. I was always encouraged to turn off the TV or get off the computer and go outside—actually, I was forced to do this, as I never willingly turned off these devices as a teenager. My point in sharing my background information is that I was raised with this concept that technology is more of a hindrance on our lives than an aid and that it complicates a simple lifestyle. While parts of me still believe this and refuse to purchase a cable package, I have come around to the fact that change is inevitable and it is necessary for me to embrace it in order to better reach my students as they are products of the technology generation. My students will never know what life was like before the Internet, cell phones, Facebook, and Twitter. I see now that there are effective ways to integrate these technologies in a classroom as a way of engaging students and assessing their comprehension. For example, on our first day of class this quarter, we were instructed to use our cell phones to answer survey questions on our technology knowledge. This is something I could use in my future classrooms to assess an overall status on progress my class is making. For example, an anonymous assessment on a piece of literature we’re currently reading, or grammar quiz. This allows students to also see how they compare to the rest of the class without standing out. Another idea that was presented during this course was using Twitter to update students on homework assignments. I would have never thought of this on my own! I am a novice in the Twitter world but this is something I would be willing to learn and incorporate in my classes to keep students engaged and connected.
This course introduced me to another helpful tool, Rubistar. This free website allowed me to create a rubric based on an assignment I designed in merely minutes. I found it easy to use, with only a few glitches. The use of rubrics will allow me to grade consistently for each student and it allows students to know what is expected of them and what it takes for them to succeed. I always want to set my students up for success, and rubrics will do just that.
Teachers exhibit knowledge, skills, and work processes representative of an innovative professional in a global and digital society. Teachers:
a.
demonstrate fluency in technology systems and the transfer of current knowledge to new technologies and situations.
The TEARS article we read earlier in the quarter explored the multiple obstacles current teachers face when attempting to integrate new technologies into the classroom. The five obstacles were defined as time, expertise, access, resources, and support (TEARS). It is important as a future teacher to be aware of the possible obstacles I will face. This course in computer tools has equipped me in many ways to combat these obstacles head on--especially in the areas of expertise and resources. I am leaving this course with more confidence with technology and the possibilities in my classroom than when I first arrived. Thanks to our visit to the CECH Library, I am knowledgable of the many resources available to me. We were also prepared through our Classroom Management assignment for impromptu lesson plans when technology may fail us or may not be available. There will be times when I will need to think on my feet or prepare a lesson plan around what I have access to. This class has prepared me to be open minded in these circumstances and think outside of the box and work with what I have.
A specific form of technology that I feel more comfortable with is the SMARTboard. While I am not fluent in all its capabilities, I am astounded by what I have seen. We had a guest speaker one afternoon that shared with us the endless possibilities for the SMARTboard. I loved the idea of classroom involvement with a SMARTboard and having students come up and interact. I can also record step-by-step instructions for students and post it to our classroom website so that they can easily navigate assignments on their home computers. I found this piece of emerging technology extremely interesting and useful.
4. Promote and Model Digital Citizenship and Responsibility
Teachers understand local and global societal issues and responsibilities in an evolving digital culture and exhibit legal and ethical behavior in their professional practices. Teachers:
a.
advocate, model, and teach safe, legal, and ethical use of digital information and technology, including respect for copyright, intellectual property, and the appropriate documentation of sources.
One of the most valuable studies we did this quarter was gain an understanding of ethical uses of technology in a classroom. We examined documents that a student and his/her parent would be obligated to sign in order to participate in computer activities at school, as well as a document similar to what I will have to sign one day in order to teach. Today there are issues of privacy in regards to teachers' behavior on Facebook as well as other social networking sites; there are issues of students' privacy when incorporated blogs or wikis in a classroom; and there are certainly issues of plagiarism when full papers are available at a click of a mouse online. I have a better understanding of possible scenarios to be aware of when integrating technology in my classroom, as well as the appropriate consequences and responses to concerned parents. Dr. Angelone expressed that this is one area that she felt least prepared for during her first years of teaching, and I appreciate her taking the time to prepare us better.
Teachers continuously improve their professional practice, model lifelong learning, and exhibit leadership in their school and professional community by promoting and demonstrating the effective use of digital tools and resources. Teachers:
c.
evaluate and reflect on current research and professional practice on a regular basis to make effective use of existing and emerging digital tools and resources in support of student learning.
Something very important about myself is that I am a lifelong learner. I thrive in learning environments and prevent complacency in all facets of my life. I feel as though this class, while being extremely helpful and eye-opening, has just covered the tip of the iceberg. I now have a good understanding of a survey of possibilities for technology integration; I have gotten my feet wet and knowing myself, I will now utilize my resources and attempt to gain even more information. I am excited for opportunities to grow in this area and to practice them in a classroom setting.
An informative resource was the website evaluation form we used to gauge the authenticity of websites. This will be a useful tool in the future when assigning research papers. I want my students to be aware of information fraud on the internet so that their work has integrity in my class and in their future assignments. This tool will also be helpful for me in evaluating websites before using its information offered to present to my class. I want to use only credible resources and this form will help me to do that.
As I mentioned previously in my E-Portfolio, I was hesitant coming into this class and nearly resistant to the idea of integrating technology in my future secondary language arts classroom. Part of this is how I was raised but also how I have been inspired by literature. For instance, the book Walden by Henry David Thoreau is about a man that leaves civilization to find the true meaning of life. Thoreau says in his book, "I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived." I remember reading this in high school and being inspired to fast from television, computer, and iPods. When I traveled for mission work to Africa, India, and Mexico I was in circumstances where I had to fast from technology and these were some of the best experiences of my entire life. It was truly hard for me coming into this class to see the benefits that technology could offer when we live in a world where people are uncomfortable sitting in a waiting room without texting or checking Facebook/Twitter on their smartphones. Our society seems to be lacking intimacy skills because of our dependence on entertainment found in technology.
So this is where I have just decided to surrender. I came to a revelation that I do not want to be the old stubborn hag that complains about the "good ol days of way back when..." Instead, I want to be the cool, hip teacher that is down with the times. I cannot change these flaws that I see in society, I am only one person, but I will promise myself to use technology in a way that fosters intimacy in my classroom. I want my students to feel connected with me and to one another. And this class has opened my eyes to how this can be achieved. This class has transformed my preconceived notions of technology and has left me wanting more!
My name is Kara Hendy and I am a Junior at the University of Cincinnati. I am studying to be a High School English teacher. I have a passion for high school students and chose to teach Language Arts because it is a subject matter that naturally fosters an opportunity for classroom discussion. I am currently a full time student as well as a full time employee at Starbucks. I have worked at Starbucks for the past three years as a Shift Supervisor. I absolutely love my job because the people I work with and serve are incredible, and in many ways, they have become a second family. I enjoy spending the little spare time that I have with my parents and my friends. I love to travel; I have been to Africa twice, India, and Mexico numerous times. All of these trips were mission trips with my church and were very educational and rewarding. I hope for the opportunity to teach abroad someday and if not, I would love to move across the country to teach. I am 23 years old and entering the stage where my friends are getting married. This year I will be a bridesmaid in 4 weddings! And this is only the beginning... :) I look forward to this quarter as it equips me to be a better teacher.
1. The Great Gatsby Game http://greatgatsbygame.com/2. I would say this is a drill-type game, not because it is bursting with facts but because it is a low level thinking game. There are a few facts of the storyline used within the game--dialogue between Nick and Gatsby and other characters. In the same breath, I think this game might also be considered a role-playing game because as a gamer, you are assuming the role of Nick and it's centered around his journey in finding Gatsby.3. This game could be used for further discussion of the novel--ask students why they think the game creator made the decisions that he/she did. Ask student how the game portrayed scenes of the novel and what creative changes they would make to the game. This inspires critical thinking and allows creativity. Compare and contrast.4. My experience with this game was that it reminded me of old school Mario. I, personally, am not a good gamer. I remember as a kid, my older brother would play Nintendo and would never include me or show me how it worked--his patience was very thin to teach his annoying little sister the ropes. It was his thing, and I would shrug my shoulders and play with my Barbies instead. To this day, because I am not good at these sort of games, I have very little interest in them.
1. SMARTExchange http://exchange.smarttech.com/details.html?id=75961455-7228-42ef-a654-27b8986267312. This was called the "Popcorn Game" and was drill-type game used to quiz on vocabulary....
Objectivist v. Constructivist
When I think of Constructivist Teaching Methods, I think of building blocks. This theory takes the stance of building on top of what is already known based on experiences and prior knowledge and then taking it the next step further in the learning process.
When I think of Behaviorism/Objectivism, I think of dog training. This theory takes the stance that people learn from positive and negative reinforcement. This is carried out with rewards and punishments.
- Creativity is less encouraged--more about following the rules/schedule/routine/instructions.
- Strict following of curriculum.
- Teacher firmly establishes role of authority figure.
- Belief that learning is acquired through repetition.
- Students mostly work alone.
- Videos of Objectivism Theory in the classroom:
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-S54bbX6eA Ferris Bueller's teacher is objectivist in this clip. There is no feedback from the students and zero classroom interaction. No fun in learning. And probably little actual learning is happening.
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGCJ46vyR9o&feature=youtu.be This is a critical view of collegiate learning environments and how lecture halls are set up. It is nearly impossible for these lecture halls to encourage classroom interaction. This is an example of strict adherence to lesson plans and test taking.
I remember my high school classrooms to resemble more of a constructivist classroom. We were assigned many group projects and were encouraged to think outside the box and actively participated in discussions, games, and other activities. When disciplined, we were mostly spoken to like an adult and reasoned with. When we had projects, there were always various choices to pick from.Does technology make a difference in the learning process or could you teach just as well without it?
Are students today fundamentally different than students in the past?
http://sitemaker.umich.edu/lem.smith/effectiveness_of_computers_in_education
Click here for larger version
Possible Solutions:
E-Portfolio
1. Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity
Teachers use their knowledge of subject matter, teaching and learning, and technology to facilitate experiences that advance student learning, creativity, and innovation in both face-to-face and virtual environments. Teachers:
a.
promote, support, and model creative and innovative thinking and inventiveness.
This course provided many tools and resources to allow for creative and innovative thinking in our future classrooms. When the quarter first began, I had a few concerns/doubts on how possible it would be to integrate technology in a high school English classroom. My only experiences with technology in English were video clips, PowerPoints, and old school overhead projectors. I model most of my educational philosophy after my high school English teacher and I think it was hard for me to wrap my mind around straying from what I experienced in her classroom. Now I see how necessary technology is because it engages students. More than anything, I want to reach my students and utilize different strategies for learning.
I think one of the most exciting things about this course was collaborating with fellow students in Secondary Education Language Arts majors and creating a lesson plan using technology. It was fun to bounce ideas off one another in forming a plan to teach our class about poets and poetry devices while integrating technology and games.
Our class Diigo site is one example of how creativity and innovative thinking was promoted throughout this course. We were encouraged to collaborate constructivist lessons--which is, in fact, a constructivist approach. We were able to give one another feedback on our findings and this opened ourselves up to fresh ideas to integrate technology in our classrooms based on subject matter and grade level.
Classroom Diigo: http://groups.diigo.com/group/computertoolsforteachers
2. Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments
Teachers design, develop, and evaluate authentic learning experiences and assessment incorporating contemporary tools and resources to maximize content learning in context and to develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes identified in the NETS•S. Teachers:
d. provide students with multiple and varied formative and summative assessments aligned with content and technology standards and use resulting data to inform learning and teaching.
Even though I am three years into my major in Secondary Education Language Arts, this was the first class that instructed me to create and practice lesson planning. I began this class thinking I was just going to get a refresher in different programs such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. I was pleasantly surprised to be wrong about this course. I was introduced to multiple resources for lesson planning through the CECH website that I was completely unaware that existed. This really takes the pressure off, knowing that my creative thinking will run dry at times, and this is such a great tool to inspire creativity in lesson plans and read feedback from other teachers in the field on what worked in their classrooms and what did not.
In some ways I was raised to be cautious in adapting to technology. I used to joke that my dad was amish in his stubbornness to accept the inevitable change in technology. We were the last family to get cell phones, DVD players, or high speed Internet. I was always encouraged to turn off the TV or get off the computer and go outside—actually, I was forced to do this, as I never willingly turned off these devices as a teenager. My point in sharing my background information is that I was raised with this concept that technology is more of a hindrance on our lives than an aid and that it complicates a simple lifestyle. While parts of me still believe this and refuse to purchase a cable package, I have come around to the fact that change is inevitable and it is necessary for me to embrace it in order to better reach my students as they are products of the technology generation. My students will never know what life was like before the Internet, cell phones, Facebook, and Twitter. I see now that there are effective ways to integrate these technologies in a classroom as a way of engaging students and assessing their comprehension. For example, on our first day of class this quarter, we were instructed to use our cell phones to answer survey questions on our technology knowledge. This is something I could use in my future classrooms to assess an overall status on progress my class is making. For example, an anonymous assessment on a piece of literature we’re currently reading, or grammar quiz. This allows students to also see how they compare to the rest of the class without standing out. Another idea that was presented during this course was using Twitter to update students on homework assignments. I would have never thought of this on my own! I am a novice in the Twitter world but this is something I would be willing to learn and incorporate in my classes to keep students engaged and connected.
This course introduced me to another helpful tool, Rubistar. This free website allowed me to create a rubric based on an assignment I designed in merely minutes. I found it easy to use, with only a few glitches. The use of rubrics will allow me to grade consistently for each student and it allows students to know what is expected of them and what it takes for them to succeed. I always want to set my students up for success, and rubrics will do just that.
CECH website, curriculum resource page: http://www.libraries.uc.edu/research/subject_resources/crc/ta_lp1.html#english
Rubistar: http://rubistar.4teachers.org/
3. Model Digital-Age Work and Learning
Teachers exhibit knowledge, skills, and work processes representative of an innovative professional in a global and digital society. Teachers:
a.
demonstrate fluency in technology systems and the transfer of current knowledge to new technologies and situations.
The TEARS article we read earlier in the quarter explored the multiple obstacles current teachers face when attempting to integrate new technologies into the classroom. The five obstacles were defined as time, expertise, access, resources, and support (TEARS). It is important as a future teacher to be aware of the possible obstacles I will face. This course in computer tools has equipped me in many ways to combat these obstacles head on--especially in the areas of expertise and resources. I am leaving this course with more confidence with technology and the possibilities in my classroom than when I first arrived. Thanks to our visit to the CECH Library, I am knowledgable of the many resources available to me. We were also prepared through our Classroom Management assignment for impromptu lesson plans when technology may fail us or may not be available. There will be times when I will need to think on my feet or prepare a lesson plan around what I have access to. This class has prepared me to be open minded in these circumstances and think outside of the box and work with what I have.
A specific form of technology that I feel more comfortable with is the SMARTboard. While I am not fluent in all its capabilities, I am astounded by what I have seen. We had a guest speaker one afternoon that shared with us the endless possibilities for the SMARTboard. I loved the idea of classroom involvement with a SMARTboard and having students come up and interact. I can also record step-by-step instructions for students and post it to our classroom website so that they can easily navigate assignments on their home computers. I found this piece of emerging technology extremely interesting and useful.
SMARTboard lesson plans: http://exchange.smarttech.com/curriculum.html
4. Promote and Model Digital Citizenship and Responsibility
Teachers understand local and global societal issues and responsibilities in an evolving digital culture and exhibit legal and ethical behavior in their professional practices. Teachers:including respect for copyright, intellectual property, and the appropriate documentation of sources.
One of the most valuable studies we did this quarter was gain an understanding of ethical uses of technology in a classroom. We examined documents that a student and his/her parent would be obligated to sign in order to participate in computer activities at school, as well as a document similar to what I will have to sign one day in order to teach. Today there are issues of privacy in regards to teachers' behavior on Facebook as well as other social networking sites; there are issues of students' privacy when incorporated blogs or wikis in a classroom; and there are certainly issues of plagiarism when full papers are available at a click of a mouse online. I have a better understanding of possible scenarios to be aware of when integrating technology in my classroom, as well as the appropriate consequences and responses to concerned parents. Dr. Angelone expressed that this is one area that she felt least prepared for during her first years of teaching, and I appreciate her taking the time to prepare us better.
Ethical Uses of Technology Lesson: http://computertools12s.wikispaces.com/Ethical+Uses+of+Technology
5. Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership
Teachers continuously improve their professional practice, model lifelong learning, and exhibit leadership in their school and professional community by promoting and demonstrating the effective use of digital tools and resources. Teachers:Something very important about myself is that I am a lifelong learner. I thrive in learning environments and prevent complacency in all facets of my life. I feel as though this class, while being extremely helpful and eye-opening, has just covered the tip of the iceberg. I now have a good understanding of a survey of possibilities for technology integration; I have gotten my feet wet and knowing myself, I will now utilize my resources and attempt to gain even more information. I am excited for opportunities to grow in this area and to practice them in a classroom setting.
An informative resource was the website evaluation form we used to gauge the authenticity of websites. This will be a useful tool in the future when assigning research papers. I want my students to be aware of information fraud on the internet so that their work has integrity in my class and in their future assignments. This tool will also be helpful for me in evaluating websites before using its information offered to present to my class. I want to use only credible resources and this form will help me to do that.
Link to Website: http://descy.50megs.com/Emankato/mankato.html
Final Reflection
As I mentioned previously in my E-Portfolio, I was hesitant coming into this class and nearly resistant to the idea of integrating technology in my future secondary language arts classroom. Part of this is how I was raised but also how I have been inspired by literature. For instance, the book Walden by Henry David Thoreau is about a man that leaves civilization to find the true meaning of life. Thoreau says in his book, "I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived." I remember reading this in high school and being inspired to fast from television, computer, and iPods. When I traveled for mission work to Africa, India, and Mexico I was in circumstances where I had to fast from technology and these were some of the best experiences of my entire life. It was truly hard for me coming into this class to see the benefits that technology could offer when we live in a world where people are uncomfortable sitting in a waiting room without texting or checking Facebook/Twitter on their smartphones. Our society seems to be lacking intimacy skills because of our dependence on entertainment found in technology.
So this is where I have just decided to surrender. I came to a revelation that I do not want to be the old stubborn hag that complains about the "good ol days of way back when..." Instead, I want to be the cool, hip teacher that is down with the times. I cannot change these flaws that I see in society, I am only one person, but I will promise myself to use technology in a way that fosters intimacy in my classroom. I want my students to feel connected with me and to one another. And this class has opened my eyes to how this can be achieved. This class has transformed my preconceived notions of technology and has left me wanting more!